About The Theater

The Newport Opera House Theater and Performing Arts Center

The Newport Opera House Theater and Performing Arts Center is actively engaged in restoring and renovating the historic 1867 Opera House Theater in downtown Newport into a 700 seat venue for year-round programming of live performances and other cultural, educational and civic activity. The theater is among the ten oldest surviving Opera Houses in America and the oldest surviving theater building in Rhode Island.

The restoration and revitalization of the Opera House Theater will bring year-round performing arts to Newport’s original town center, and restore an architectural treasure in historic Washington Square. The restored Theater and Performing Arts center will have an enormously positive impact upon Newport by serving as an economic driver, an educational catalyst, and cultural asset to our city and the region.

The renovated theater will include a modernized stage and auditorium; state of the art theatrical equipment, projection, light and sound; a new box office; a large second floor lobby overlooking Washington Square; education and office space; and a wonderful rooftop garden and terrace with views of the harbor and the Newport Bridge.

Programming at the restored Opera House Theater will be of the highest quality: diverse and engaging, fun and professional, inclusive and innovative. The theater will offer a broad range of programming and live performances – music, dance, theater, comedy, educational programs, speakers’ series, youth and family programs….and much more!